Happy Halloween, Vivi
by Shishio287
Summary: Halloween has come, and I decide to take Vivi to Earth so he can trick or treat for the first time in his life, but things get freaky when we discover two corpses in an alley, and I meet someone I haven't seen in three years. Review please. OneShot


Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this fic. except my characters. These include Michael, Cory Bain, Phantom, and Dr. Topkins.

**IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR ALL READERS: **This takes place two weeks after the ending events of the epilogue in A New Life: Conclusions. If you haven't read my other stories, then certain things will be spoiled for you in this story. I recommend you read my story (A New Life: Beginnings) and the other three stories before you read this. If you have read these stories or if you don't care if things are spoiled for you or if you just don't care period then read on and enjoy.

Notice: The names Dr. Topkins and Cory Bain are names I came up with. If anyone with these names exists, it is purely coincidental.

**WARNING:** One of the corpses I mention in this story is badly mutilated, and I go into a decent description of it. If you don't like that, then just skip the paragraph that describes it.

* * *

Happy Halloween, Vivi

It was a cool autumn day in the Black Mage Village. I was sitting out on the porch of the hut I shared with Vivi. I was wearing my light blue 'Robe of Lords' as well as my blue 'Brave Suit.' Since it was a cool day, I also wore long, brown pants. I also had my white sneakers on as well as my white cape. I didn't have my swords strapped to my sword belt, but they were both easy to access should I ever need them. The leaves of the trees around the hut were brilliant shades of orange, yellow, red, and brown.

Vivi and I had decided to visit the Black Mage Village for our vacation. Vivi and I both had to get away from the hustle and bustle of Lindblum. Owning your own District is pretty stressful. We decided to go here to relax. This hut served as a vacation home for my brother and me. Dr. Topkins agreed to watch over the Education District while we were gone.

Dr. Topkins was a brilliant scholar. He's a middle-aged man who has a sharp mind about most everything, and he has a good mind for business. He stood at least 5' 4" and never took off his scholar robes, even in hot weather. He had brown hair that was graying in a few areas. He also had intelligent green eyes, and a slightly pale face. That's understandable, since I never see him outside of the Academy. Even when I do see him outside, he doesn't stay out there for very long. His explanation: he doesn't like to leave his research unattended for too long.

I made him the head of 'Lindblum Academy' a position he takes very seriously. He reminds me of Doctor Tot, both are brilliant scholars and highly respected. In fact, it was Doctor Tot who talked me into hiring Dr. Topkins. I'm glad he did.

I sighed, and leaned back in the chair that I was sitting in. I was just sitting there and enjoying the cool autumn weather. That's when I saw two figures approach my hut. One was a Black Mage that held a gold staff. The other was a Female Genome. I knew these two very well.

I smiled, and waved at them. It was Mr. 288 and Mikoto. Mr. 288 was pretty much the leader of the Black Mages while Mikoto was the leader of the Genomes. Mikoto had changed over the past year and a half. She had become much more compassionate and caring, though she still had her cynical moments. Mr. 288 and Mikoto have been going out for the past year and a half. My guess is that it's thanks to him that Mikoto has learned to be compassionate and caring.

I spoke. "Hey you two, what are you doing here?"

As soon as they reached the porch, Mikoto spoke. "Well, I'm not sure what Mr. 288 wants, but I need to see Vivi."

I spoke. "Vivi's at the shop in the village. He hasn't come back yet. If you want to see him, I'd go there." She nodded, and left to go find Vivi.

As soon as she disappeared through the trees, Mr. 288 spoke. "Do you know when Vivi will be back?"

I thought for a moment, and spoke. "I think he'll be back in fifteen minutes, why?" Mr. 288 looked around the area, than he looked at me.

"Can I speak to you in private?" I was confused as to why he wanted to see me in private, but I nodded, sat up, and lead him into the hut.

* * *

Vivi and I weren't that big on decorating our hut. It was a small rectangular building. There was a table we used to eat on. On that table was a flower pot filled with flowers. There was a large bed near the left wall. That was my bed. There was another large bed that was near the right wall. That was Vivi's bed. There were also a few chairs, and two rocking chairs. Both of those rocking chairs sat between the two beds.

There were also two windows, one on the left side of the hut, the other on the right. There was a fire place at the far back wall right between our beds. There was also a large cupboard on the left wall. We used this to store our plates and utensils. There was also a large cabinet near the right wall. This was used to store our clothes, and my swords. There was also a desk with a chair near the left wall, and a large bookcase used to store our books. All and all, it was a simple hut.

Once inside, I turned to Mr. 288. "Well, what did you want to talk about?" He closed the door, and looked at me.

He seemed nervous. "Well…it's about Mikoto." I nodded, and he continued to speak. "Well, I'm sure you already know that we've been going out together for over a year now." I nodded, and he continued to talk. "Well, I've been reading books on romance, and I've read about something called 'Proposing.' I want to do that to Mikoto."

I smiled. "So you want to propose to Mikoto?"

He nodded. "Yes, the book said that I'd need a ring, and well, I was wondering if this was a good ring." He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a ring box.

He opened the ring box, and I saw a diamond ring inside. The diamond was cut masterfully, and sparkled in the sunlight that came in through one of the windows. I smiled. "That ring looks great Mr. 288. I'm sure Mikoto will love it."

He sighed in relief. "Good, because I wasn't sure if this ring would do or not."

I smiled. "It's fine Mr. 288, but you do realize that by proposing to Mikoto your saying that you'll marry her, right?"

He nodded. "Yes, I know. The book told me about marriage, and I want to marry Mikoto. I really do."

I smiled. "And I think you two will be a great couple."

I could see the smile in his large, oval, amber eyes. "Thanks, but there's just one problem…" he paused.

I spoke. "What is it?"

He looked at me. "I don't know how to propose to her. The book said I should set the right mood, but I don't know what that means."

I smiled. "Don't worry Mr. 288. It's easy to set a mode."

He looked worried. "Have you proposed before?" This question caught me off guard.

"Well…no, but I have read about other people proposing. It always seems to be during a romantic or happy occasion, usually something special, like a holiday, birthday, or vacation. I once heard about a guy proposing to his girlfriend while at his cousins wedding and he did it right on the dance floor in front of everyone."

Mr. 288's eyes widened. "Wow…that really happened?"

I nodded. "Yep, it really happened."

Mr. 288 thought about this for a moment. "Well, I don't know of any occasions were I could propose to her."

I spoke. "Well I'm sure there'll be-" suddenly, I had a thought. I started to get a big smile on my face.

Mr. 288 looked at me with hope and suspicion. "Michael, what are you planning?"

I spoke. "This is the month of October, and there's an Earth holiday that my country celebrates on the last day of October called 'Halloween.' I think that'll be the perfect time to propose to her."

Mr. 288 looked confused. "What's Halloween?" I smiled, but before I could answer, the doorknob turned.

* * *

We turned around and saw a familiar figure walk through the door. He wore a blue and white jacket with leather shoes and light-green, dark-green stripped pants as well as a floppy, brown, leather steeple hat. In his right hand he clutched a golden staff; it was called the 'Mace of Zeus.' I smiled when I saw the figure; it was Vivi Ornitier, my blood brother.

Vivi was eleven now, and I was twenty-one. He had grown in the past two years. When we first started our adventure, he measured up to my waist. Now, he measured up to the top of my stomach. Even though he'd grown, his fashion sense hadn't changed. One of the mages had to resize his clothes because he refused to wear anything else. I noticed that Vivi was holding a bag filled with supplies.

He wasn't the only one there, Mikoto was there as well. Once he saw her, Mr. 288 quickly closed the ring box, and put it back into his pocket.

Vivi looked at us. "What are you two doing?"

Mikoto spoke. "Yes, I'd like to know too."

I spoke. "Mr. 288 and I were planning on having a Halloween party."

Mr. 288 looked at me. "We were?" I gave him a look, and he got the message. "Oh, right, yeah we were planning a Halloween party."

Vivi and Mikoto spoke at the same time. "What's Halloween?"

Mr. 288 spoke. "That's what I'd like to know?"

They all turned to me. I smiled. "Alright, I'll tell you guys about Halloween."

* * *

I sat down in one of the rocking chairs. Vivi sat in the other one, and Mikoto and Mr. 288 sat at the table. I spoke. "Well, first off, the word itself, "Halloween," actually has its origins in the Catholic Church. It comes from a contracted corruption of All Hallows Eve. November 1st, "All Hollows Day" or "All Saints Day", is a Catholic day of observance in honor of saints. But, in the 5th century BC, in Celtic Ireland, summer officially ended on October 31st. The holiday was called Samhain, the Celtic new year."

Vivi spoke. "So, it started in Celtic Ireland."

I nodded "Yeah, but there is more. One story says that, on that day, the disembodied spirits of all those who had died throughout the preceding year would come back in search of living bodies to possess for the next year. It was believed to be their only hope for the afterlife. The Celts believed all laws of space and time were suspended during this time, allowing the spirit world to intermingle with the living."

Vivi was shocked. "So what did the people do?"

I smiled. "Well, they didn't want to be possessed. So on the night of October 31st, villagers would extinguish the fires in their homes, to make them cold and undesirable. They would then dress up in all manner of ghoulish costumes and noisily paraded around the neighborhood, being as destructive as possible in order to frighten away spirits looking for bodies to possess."

Mr. 288 spoke. "So costumes are a part of this holiday?"

I nodded. "Yeah, there's still more, though. The Romans adopted the Celtic practices as their own. The thrust of the practices also changed over time to become more ritualized. As belief in spirit possession waned, the practice of dressing up like hobgoblins, ghosts, and witches took on a more ceremonial role."

Vivi nodded. "So people decided to dress up for fun rather than necessity."

I nodded. "Indeed."

Mikoto spoke. "What other traditions are there for this holiday?"

I thought about that for a moment. "Well, there's trick-or-treating."

Vivi spoke. "What's trick-or-treating?"

I spoke. "Well, first I'll explain how Halloween came to America. The custom of Halloween was brought to America in the 1840's by Irish immigrants fleeing their country's potato famine. At that time, the favorite pranks in New England included tipping over outhouses and unhinging fence gates."

Vivi looked disgusted. "Tipping over outhouses, that's gross?"

I nodded. "Indeed it is."

Mikoto looked confused. "Okay, that explains the trick, but where does the treat part come from?"

I smiled. "The custom of trick-or-treating is thought to have originated not with the Irish Celts, but with a ninth-century European custom called souling. On November 2nd, All Souls Day, early Christians would walk from village to village begging for "soul cakes," which are square pieces of bread with currants. The more soul cakes the beggars would receive, the more prayers they would promise to say on behalf of the dead relatives of the donors. Nowadays, trick-or-treating is a tradition where kids go door-to-door dressed up in an assortment of costumes, asking for candy. Their parents or older siblings will go with them to insure that they get home safely. Even on Halloween, it doesn't pay to walk the streets alone at night."

Mr. 288 spoke. "Maybe we should go trick-or-treating?"

I shook my head. "No, we're too old for that, well, except for Vivi. Besides, Halloween isn't celebrated on Gaia. People wouldn't understand what you were talking about. Usually, during Halloween, the teenagers and adults go to Halloween parties rather than go trick-or-treating, and that's what we're gonna do. We're going to have a Halloween party. To be honest, this'll be my first Halloween party, but that's okay, it'll be your guy's first Halloween party as well."

Vivi spoke. "That sounds like fun. I'd like to have a Halloween party." Mr. 288 and Mikoto nodded in agreement.

I smiled. "So, it's decided. We'll all have a Halloween party. It'll take place on October 31st, Halloween night." They nodded, and got up from their seats.

Mr. 288 spoke. "If we're going to have a party, we better start getting things together." Mikoto nodded in agreement.

I nodded as well. "You're right; I'll go with you and inform the villagers about the party. I'm sure they'll have many questions about Halloween."

Vivi got up as well. "I'm going, too." We all left the hut to tell the villagers about our party.

* * *

As I predicted, many of the mages and Genomes had questions about Halloween. I addressed every question I could. Eventually, after all the questions were asked we started to prepare for our party that would be held two weeks from today.

* * *

After the first week, most of the things were gathered, and most of the costumes were made. I decided to go as the Phantom of the Opera. Vivi couldn't decide what to go as, so he decided to just go as a ghost. Mr. 288 decided to go as a scarecrow, and Mikoto decided to be a witch. The other Black Mages and Genomes chose similar costumes. The decorations for the village were great. There were orange and black streamers, as well as fake bats and fake spider webs. I had to make a quick trip to Earth using my magic pearl ring in order to get those supplies, but the place looked very Halloweenie.

* * *

On the second week, Vivi and I decided to invite our friends as well. We invited, Zidane, Dagger, Steiner, Beatrix, Freya, Fratley, Eiko, Regent Cid, Lady Hilda, Quina, Doctor Tot, Kuja, Amarant, Lani, Blank, Marcus, Cinna, Ruby, and Baku. Thankfully, all of them agreed to come. They were all interested to see this Halloween party. There was only one last decoration that needed to go up; the Jack-O-Lanterns.

I was working on a Jack-O-Lantern, when Vivi walked up to me. "What's that?" He pointed to the Jack-O-Lantern.

I smiled, and looked at him. "This is a Jack-O-Lantern. They're a common sight on Halloween."

Vivi nodded. "Oh…do they have a history behind them, too?"

I smiled, and nodded. "Indeed, they do. It's an old Irish folklore."

Vivi looked up at me. "Tell me about it, please." I nodded.

"The folklore goes like this. A man named Jack, who was notorious as a drunkard and trickster, tricked Satan into climbing a tree. Jack then carved an image of a cross in the tree's trunk, trapping the devil up the tree. Jack made a deal with the devil that, if he would never tempt him again, he would promise to let him down the tree. "

Vivi looked up at me "I doubt the devil liked that."

I nodded. "He most certainly didn't, but he agreed and Jack released him. Satan, though, never forgot about how Jack tricked him."

Vivi looked up at me. "What did he do to him?"

I spoke. "Well, after Jack died, he was denied entrance to Heaven because of his evil ways, but he was also denied access to Hell because he had tricked the devil. Instead, the devil gave him a single ember to light his way through the frigid darkness. The ember was placed inside a hollowed-out turnip to keep it glowing longer. "

This confused Vivi. "Then why are you using a pumpkin for a Jack-O-Lantern instead of a turnip?"

I smiled. "Well, you see, the Irish used turnips as their "Jack's lanterns" originally. But when the immigrants came to America, they found that pumpkins were far more plentiful than turnips. So the Jack-O-Lantern in America was a hollowed-out pumpkin, lit with an ember. Besides, there are no turnips in the Black Mage Village, but there are quite a few pumpkins." Vivi nodded in understanding. He decided to make a Jack-O-Lantern of his own.

I decided to help him out with his Jack-O-Lantern. I opened the top for him, and he cleaned the pumpkin out himself. I traced a face on the pumpkin and gave Vivi my knife. I told him to cut along the black lines I drew. He nodded, and started carving. After a while, Vivi finished carving his pumpkin. I had to admit, for his first time, Vivi didn't do too bad. I put a candle in the two Jack-O-Lanterns and Vivi lit them. We placed our Jack-O-Lanterns outside on the porch. After that, we went back into the hut, ate our dinner, and slept.

* * *

Finally, the day came; October 31st, Halloween night. It was 5:00 P.M. The sun was setting, and we were waiting for the guests to arrive. I was standing there wearing my Phantom of the Opera costume. Vivi was standing right next to me in his ghost costume, which was just a white sheet with eyeholes. Everyone was eager to get this party started. I knew one individual who was extremely anxious and nervous to get the party started.

I knew that Cid was taking Tantalus with him, and I knew that Kuja and Doctor Tot were going to pick up Amarant and Lani, and I knew that Zidane was going to pick up Freya and Fratley. Finally, after a few more minutes; The Red Rose arrived.

The ship landed in a clearing in the forest. A year ago, the Black Mages decided to clear out part of the forest to create a makeshift airship landing pad. The pad was capable of holding three airships. The passengers got off, and approached us.

I smiled when I saw them head towards us. Zidane was dressed as a vampire. Dagger was also dressed as a vampire. Beatrix was dressed as a falcon. Steiner was dressed as an eagle. Quina was dressed as a frog. Freya was dressed as a dragon, and Fratley was dressed as a dragon as well.

Vivi and I waved at them. Vivi spoke "I'm glad you guys could make it."

Zidane smiled. "Hey, we wouldn't miss this for the world. Are the others here yet?"

I shook my head. "You guys are the first to arrive."

Quina spoke. "When party? I hungry."

Vivi spoke. "We'll start when everyone else arrives." That's when another airship flew to the clearing. It was the Hilda Garde 3.

The Hilda Garde 3 landed right next to the Red Rose. That's when the passengers got off. My smile widened. Like Vivi, Eiko was dressed as a ghost as well. Hilda was dressed as a zombie. Cid was dressed as an oglop, much to my surprise. Baku was dressed as King Leo. Blank was dressed as a mummy. Marcus was dressed as a goblin. Cinna was dressed like a clown, and Ruby was dressed as a cat

I spoke. "Glad to see you guys could make it." Eiko ran up and hugged Vivi. Like Vivi, she had also grown, but she was an inch shorter than Vivi.

She spoke. "Vivi, good to see you again. I haven't seen you in a while."

Vivi was confused. "I've only been gone for two weeks."

Eiko held him closer. "That's long enough for me." I smiled at the two of them. That's when I saw another airship approach the clearing. It was the Hilda Garde 1.

It landed next to the Hilda Garde 3, and the passengers emerged. Doctor Tot was dressed as a bookworm. Kuja was dressed as a gorgon. Amarant was dressed as Frankenstein (I gave him the idea). And Lani was dressed as the Bride of Frankenstein. I smiled as they approached us. "Glad you guys could make it."

Kuja spoke. "Do you think I went a little overboard with the snakes?" he motioned to his hair. His hair was completely covered in fake snakes.

I shook my head. "No, you look fine. Now let's get this party started." They cheered and we moved into the village.

* * *

We had set up a large banquet table in the middle of the village. Everyone was amazed by the decorations. We really did a fantastic job. Jack-O-Lanterns, fake webs, fake spiders, fake bats, fake rats, orange and black streamers, and a few torches. It was defiantly a fun, yet spooky atmosphere. I walked away from the main body of the group, and started the music. I had gone to Earth, and purchased a battery powered stereo. The music that played was perfect for a Halloween party. After that I returned to the group, and we started to party.

There was dancing and games, including bobbing for apples, though after Quina bobbed for the apples with her tongue still sticking out, no one wanted to bob for apples anymore. There were also party snacks. These were quickly devoured by Quina, much to everyone's dismay. Eventually, after a few hours of dancing, gaming, and snacking, we sat at the banquet table. The main course was handed out to us, and we began eating.

* * *

I was sitting in between Vivi and Mr. 288. Everyone was talking to their neighbors. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. I smiled 'this party was definitely a good idea' I thought.

Vivi looked up at me. "What are you smiling about, Michael?"

I looked down at him. "Just thinking about how good an idea it was to have this party."

Vivi nodded. "It was a good idea. I like this party." He started eating again.

I smiled. 'I couldn't agree with you more, Vivi' I thought. I returned to my food as well.

* * *

When we were halfway through the meal, I nudged Mr. 288. He looked at me. I motioned to Mikoto, who was sitting next to him. He got the message, and held up his hands to silence everyone.

Everyone was curious as to what Mr. 288 had to say. He stood up, and looked at Mikoto. "Mikoto, we've been going out for over a year now and, well…" he paused. He was losing his nerve. I nudged him to keep going. I wasn't going to let him back out of this. He seemed to regain some courage.

He spoke. "Well, I was wondering" that's when he sank down to one knee in front of Mikoto. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out the ring box. Some of the people gasped in surprise at what was going on. Clearly, they didn't see this coming. I couldn't help but smile. Mr. 288 opened the ring box, and showed Mikoto the ring. Her mouth opened in surprise. She looked at Mr. 288. Mr. 288 spoke "Mikoto…will you marry me?"

Mikoto was shocked at what she had just heard. She threw her arms around Mr. 288's neck, and started to cry a little. She spoke "yes, yes I'll marry you."

I started to clap, and so did everyone else. They also started cheering. I cheered as well. Eventually, Mikoto let go of Mr. 288 and placed the ring on her finger. It was a perfect fit. I held up my drink. "I propose a toast to Mr. 288 and Mikoto." Everyone grabbed their cups, and we toasted to the soon-to-be-married couple. After that heartwarming moment, we finished our meal, and started dancing again.

* * *

I decided to sit the dance out. While I was sitting down, Mr. 288 walked up to me. I could see the happiness in his eyes. "Michael thanks for helping me out."

I smiled. "No problem. I'm sure you and Mikoto will be great together." He nodded, and turned his head to look at the people dancing.

He turned to look at me. "This party was a good idea. I'm starting to like this Halloween."

I smiled. "Yeah, it's a great holiday." I looked up at the night sky, and sighed.

Mr. 288 left me, and started to dance with Mikoto. I watched them dance. I also watched Eiko dance with Vivi. I smiled as I watched the two of them dance. Eventually, I turned my attention over to Zidane and Dagger. The two of them danced with grace and elegance. I must say, it was nice to watch everyone dancing and having a good time. 'This truly is a great night' I thought.

* * *

It was 10:38 P.M. and everyone decided to leave. We saw everyone off. They all wished us a happy Halloween. Kuja, Doctor Tot, Amarant, and Lani were the first to leave. Zidane, Dagger, Beatrix, Steiner, Freya, Fratley and Quina left as well. Before they left, Zidane and Freya mentioned something about trying this holiday out at Alexandria and Burmecia, next year. Honestly, I thought it was a good idea. Cid, Hilda, Eiko, and the Tantalus gang left after them. Regent Cid also said he'd like to try this holiday out at Lindblum, next year, as well. I had to agree with that. After everyone left, Vivi and I went to our hut near the village.

While we were walking, Vivi turned to me. "That was a great party, Michael. It was a great idea."

I smiled. "Thanks, Vivi. Pity that-" suddenly, I had another idea. Another big smile crossed my face.

Vivi looked up at me. He knew that smile. He spoke. "What is it, Michael? You have an idea. I can tell."

I looked down at him. "Vivi, how would you like to go to Earth, and go trick-or-treating?"

His eyes lit up. "Sure, I'd love to."

I smiled. "Well then, let's get to the hut and get ready." He nodded, and we ran to the hut.

* * *

We made it to the hut in less than thirty seconds. I took my costume off and put on my usual clothes. I went to my sword drawer and retrieved my two swords. One could never be too careful on the streets at night. I turned, and saw that Vivi still had his costume on.

I spoke. "You can take that off, Vivi. Halloween is probably the only night you can walk around Earth as yourself. People will think you're dressed up like they are." Vivi nodded, and removed his costume. He walked over to his bed, and retrieved the 'Mace of Zeus' which was leaning on the wall near his bed.

He turned to me. "Are we ready to go?"

I smiled, put my hood up, and nodded. "Yeah, we're ready." Suddenly, a thought occurred to me. I held up my hand. "Oh, wait." I quickly took a piece of paper out from the desk, and wrote a note to attach to the door.

One thing I learned about my rings ability to cross dimensions and worlds is that it needs a minimum of one day to recharge its mystical energy when I cross over to another dimension or world. If I used my ring to travel to one place in this world to another place in this world, it'll only drain a small amount of my rings energy. The note would inform anyone who was looking for us that we'd gone to Earth, and that we'd be back tomorrow night.

After writing the note and placing it outside the door, I turned to Vivi. "Okay, now we're ready." Vivi nodded, and walked over to me. I knew an area that was close to where I wanted to go. I held up my ring, and said where I wanted to go. There was a flash of light, and I felt a familiar falling sensation. We were being warped.

* * *

I landed on the ground, and looked around at my surroundings. Vivi landed right next to me. I turned to look at him. I smiled. "Vivi, welcome to Purdue University." Vivi looked around.

We were inside an office building at Rawls Hall. It used to be my fathers office before he died. Vivi looked out the window, and saw part of the campus. He spoke. "Wow, it's so big."

I chuckled. "You have no idea." I turned to Vivi. "The city of West Lafayette is pretty close to Purdue. We can start there" he nodded. Before we left, I noticed that the trash bin was empty. I grabbed the trash bag and gave it to Vivi. I smiled. "Put your candy in here, Vivi." He nodded, and grabbed the bag. After that, we left the office.

* * *

Thankfully, it was after hours. The only people who were around were the janitors, and they were easy to avoid. Eventually, we left Rawls Hall, and went into the city of West Lafayette.

It was a perfect night. It wasn't too cold. The sky was partly cloudy, and the Moon was full. It was definitely a great night for trick-or-treating. It made me wish I was a kid again.

Vivi was surprised at the amount of people that were walking around. Most of them were kids, dressed up going trick-or-treating. I looked down at Vivi. A few kids gave Vivi a passing glance. One of the kids spoke. "Hey, neat costume"

Vivi seemed surprised, but nodded. "Uh, thanks." The kids walked off.

I smiled. "See, Vivi, everyone thinks you're dressed up like them."

He nodded. "Yeah, you're right."

I spoke. "So, where should we start?" Eventually, Vivi picked a place, and started trick-or-treating for the first time in his life.

* * *

Vivi walked up to the door, and rang the bell. An old woman dressed as a gypsy answered the door. She smiled at Vivi. "Oh, what a cute costume. Would you like some candy, dear?" Vivi nodded, and held out his bag. She put three pieces of candy into his bag.

Vivi looked up at her. "Thanks."

She smiled. "You're welcome, dear. Have a happy Halloween."

Vivi nodded. "You too." She closed the door, and Vivi walked back to me.

I smiled. "Well, looks like you're off to a good start."

He smiled. "I think I like this trick-or-treating thing."

I smiled. "Well, shall we move on?" He nodded. We left the yard, but before we moved on, we saw a teenage woman and a little girl walk up to the house we were just at.

* * *

The woman had shoulder length raven black hair, and stood about 5' 6". The little girl had similar features, except she wasn't as tall, and her hair wasn't as long. The little girl was dressed as a fairy princess. The woman didn't have a costume. My guess was the two of them were sisters. The little girl rang the doorbell, and the old woman answered it again. The little girl spoke. "Trick-or-treat."

I didn't expect what happened next. The old woman's eyes widened and she grabbed the little girl's hand. She looked at the palm of her hand. I heard the old woman speak. "Blood, there's blood."

The woman grabbed the old woman's wrist. "Let go of her!" That's when the old woman grabbed her hand as well.

She spoke again. "There's blood here, too." She looked at the two of them. "You two are in danger. You should go home."

Both girls were freaked out. The older girl spoke "Come on Kimberly, let's go." The two turned to leave. The old woman grabbed the older sister's hand.

She spoke. "Beware the moon; it feasts during the full moon." The older sister shook her arm out of the old woman's grasp.

She looked disgusted. "You're so full of crap. Lay of the crack ya old crone." She walked off with her sister. The old woman watched them leave, before going back into her house.

* * *

Vivi looked at me; his eyes were wide. "What was that about?"

I shook my head. "I'm not sure, Vivi. That was definitely strange and disturbing."

He nodded. "Yeah, but she seemed like such a nice old lady."

I nodded. "Yeah…anyway, shall we continue trick-or-treating?" Vivi nodded, and we both moved on to the next building.

* * *

Kimberly and I were walking down the sidewalk. It had been a pretty successful evening for her. I still couldn't shake off what that old woman said to us. She was obviously on crack or some other drug. She really freaked us out. 'I gotta remember not to go near there again' I thought. The area started to get darker. I looked up and saw the clouds cover the moon.

We passed near the opening of an alley. That's when something grabbed me from behind, and pulled me into the alley. I screamed in surprise, and was thrown to the ground. I quickly got up, but before I could do anything I felt something grab my arm, twist it behind me, and slam me against the wall.

I was terrified. "What do you want!" Who ever it was spoke.

"You shouldn't have cheated on me Caitlyn. I don't like women who cheat on me. In fact, I kill them."

My eyes widened when I heard that voice. I knew who it was. "No, Cory, listen to me, it's not what you thin-" he tightened his grip on my arm, and pushed me harder against the wall. I let out a cry of pain.

"Oh, I think it's exactly what I think, you cheating whore!"

"Caitlyn!" I turned my head to look out the alley, and saw Kimberly standing there starring at me.

"Run, Kim!" I shouted. That's when I felt Cory let go of me. I saw him run at Caitlyn and grab her. She dropped her candy bag and screamed. Cory threw her into the alley as well. She hit the ground, hard. I was terrified. "KIMBERLY!" I ran to her side. She slowly got up and held onto me. She started to cry. I held her closer to me.

I looked back at Cory. He walked towards us. "Please, Cory. Do whatever you want with me, but let Kim go."

He shook his head. "Sorry, but she's a witness. I can't have her go off and tell everyone my secret."

I was confused. "What secret?" He smiled "oh, you'll find out." He looked up at the sky. The clouds were parting. His smile widened. "In fact, you're gonna find out right now."

* * *

Vivi and I had just finished with our twentieth house. Vivi's bag was bursting with candy. Vivi was very happy. He looked up at me. "Michael, I love Halloween."

I smiled at him. "I think we should call it a night, Vivi." Most of the kids had already left for home with their parents.

Vivi thought for a moment and nodded. "Okay, but where are we going to stay. Your ring still needs to recharge."

I nodded. "Yeah, I know. We'll stay at my Master's house. I'm sure he won't mind."

Vivi nodded. "Oka-" he was cut off by a loud scream, and it wasn't just one scream, it was two screams.

Vivi and I both stopped in our tracks. Vivi looked at me. "W-what was that?"

I spoke. "I'm not sure, but I've got a bad feeling about this. Come on, Vivi let's go see what happened." Vivi nodded and we ran off in the direction of the screams.

* * *

After five minutes, we were in the general area of where the screams originated from. I turned to Vivi. "Okay, the screams came from here, somewhere. Let's look for anything unusual." Vivi nodded, and we started looking.

Eventually, we found a discarded candy bag near the mouth of an alleyway. The candy was scattered on the ground. I bent down and looked at it. Then I looked at the alley. The moon was covered up, and it was too dark to see anything.

I looked at Vivi. "I'll need some kind of light source." Vivi nodded, focused his magic on the 'Mace of Zeus,' and the tip of the staff was set on fire. The fire wouldn't harm the staff. We now had an effective light source. We walked into the alley.

* * *

We had walked no further then a few feet when I stepped in something. I looked down, but couldn't make out what I was seeing. I turned to Vivi. "Vivi, shine the light closer to here." He nodded, and moved the lit staff near my foot. That's when I saw what it was. It was a puddle of some kind of red liquid. I had a feeling what the red liquid was. I hoped I was wrong.

I bent down, and touched the liquid with the index and middle finger of my right hand. The liquid was warm to the touch. I rubbed it between my thumb, index, and middle finger. The liquid was on the thick side. I sighed; it was what I feared it was.

Vivi spoke. "What is it?"

I turned to him. "Blood…and it's still warm. That means that whatever happened in this alley was recent. Let's keep looking." Vivi nodded. I wiped the blood on my fingers off on my pants. After that, we walked further into the alleyway.

* * *

There was more blood, and I swear I saw a shredded shirt at some point, though it could've just been the light. The concentration of blood increased as we got closer to the end of the alley. Now it was on the walls, as well as the floor.

That's when I noticed something strange; there were claw marks on the brick wall of the alley. I stopped and looked at these. 'Claw marks…what kind of creature is strong enough to leave claw marks in solid brick' I thought. That's when I heard Vivi scream.

Alarmed, I spun around, and saw him a few yards ahead of me. He fell backwards on the ground, dropped his staff, turned over, got onto his hands and knees, and vomited on the ground. I quickly ran over to him. 

"Vivi, what is it? What's wrong?"

He looked up at me, his body was shaking. "M-Michael, oh gosh, i-i-it was horrible." He pointed behind himself. "L-L-Look for yourself." He was obviously terrified of what he had just seen. I grabbed the staff, stood up, and held it over the spot where he saw the horrifying sight. My eyes widened and I gasped as soon as I saw what he had seen. I didn't blame Vivi for his reaction.

* * *

What I saw were the bodies of two women. One appeared to be a teenager and the other was a child. The teenager was badly mutilated. Her left eye was clawed out of its socket. The other one was opened wide with fear. The skin and muscle on the right side of her face was missing, exposing the bone to the elements. Her mouth was forced open to the point were her jaw broke. Her throat had been torn out, and her chest had been ripped open. I also noticed that her body had been split in half at the waste. Her left arm was also missing. From what I could see she had multiple fractures, and her bones were sticking out in quite a few places. She had also been stripped, and her body was covered in claw and teeth marks.

The little girl next to her wasn't as bad as she was. The only noticeable wounds I saw on her were claw marks, and the fact that her throat had been torn out. Blood and guts were all over the place. It was the most sickening thing I had ever seen in my life. These women were obviously mauled by some kind of animal.

* * *

I put my hand over my mouth and tried not to vomit myself. Thankfully, I managed to hold down my dinner. That's when I noticed what the little girl was wearing. It was a fairy princess costume, just like the one that little girl wore. Realization struck me. It was them. It was those two girls from before.

Vivi spoke, his voice sounded choked. "I-It's them isn't it? Th-Those two girls who the old woman w-warned?" I turned to him, and nodded. Vivi had tears in his eyes. "Sh-she warned them, a-and now they're dead. Th-they should've gone home like she said." Tears started to form in his eyes.

I went down on one of my knees and hugged Vivi. This usually helped calm him down, and thankfully, this was no exception. I spoke "Vivi, don't worry. Everything will be alright." I could feel his tears on my shoulder.

"W-what could've done this to them?" he asked.

I thought for a moment. That was a good question, and it was a question I didn't have an answer for. "I'm not sure, Vivi, but we're gonna find that thing, and we're gonna stop it from doing this to anyone else."

Vivi was still shaking pretty badly. He was very shaken up about what he had seen. I inwardly cursed myself for looking at those claw marks, and letting him go ahead of me.

I spoke. "Vivi, I need you to calm down. I'm gonna need your help. Will you help me?" Vivi controlled his shaking, and looked at me. He was still afraid, but he had a determined look in his eyes.

"I'll help; I wanna stop this thing, too." He said.

I smiled, and nodded. "That's the spirit, Vivi. Now, let's look for clues." Vivi nodded, and we started searching the alley.

* * *

Eventually, Vivi spotted something unusual. "Hey, Michael, come look at this." I walked over to him, and saw what he was looking at. What Vivi was looking at was a trail of blood that led up the wall. I also noticed five slash marks on the wall. I also saw the same pattern move up the wall. Whatever killed those girls had climbed out of the alley and had left a trail.

I smiled. "Good work, Vivi. We can follow this trail to the creature that did this." I grabbed Vivi, and jumped up to the roof.

* * *

We landed on the roof, and spotted the trail of blood. It was moving across the roof. We followed the trail to the edge of the roof, and saw an identical trail on another roof. Whatever killed those girls certainly wasn't doing a very good job of hiding its trail. Vivi and I continued to follow the blood trail.

* * *

Eventually, we followed the trail to an abandoned warehouse. We entered the warehouse, and looked around. The warehouse was dark, but thanks to the staffs light, we were able to see what was in front of us. The warehouse was filled with crates and other objects. Something was in here, I could feel it. 'Great, there are hundreds of places where this thing can hide' I thought.

"Vivi, stay close to me." I said. Vivi nodded, and moved closer to me. We continued to explore the warehouse.

* * *

Eventually, we made it to the center of the warehouse. Oddly enough, there was a clearing here. There was also a single light hanging from the ceiling, in the middle of the clearing. The light was on. We walked into the clearing and looked around. That's when we heard a voice.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here…trespassers."

The voice was echoing through the warehouse. It was hard to tell where it was coming from. I spoke. "Come out and show yourself."

The voice spoke, and it sounded surprised. "Well what do ya know?" That's when I saw someone emerge from behind a stack of crates. The figure walked into the light. "I thought I smelled someone familiar."

It was a man. He was about 5'10" and had wavy, blonde hair. His eyes were blue, and he had a muscular body. He was wearing a black shirt with brown pants. His skin was slightly tan, and one of his ears was pierced. It was what was on his hands that caught my attention. They were covered in blood.

I couldn't believe who I was seeing. My eyes widened in shock. "Vivi get out of here." Vivi looked up at me.

He was confused. "What?"

I didn't have time for this. "NOW!" Vivi nodded, and ran out of the area. It wasn't until I heard the door to the warehouse close that I removed my hood. "Hello, Cory." My voice had no emotion.

Cory smiled an evil smile. "Hello, Michael." We stood there starring at each other for a few seconds.

Finally, Cory spoke "what, no handshake? I thought you'd like to see an old acquaintance of yours?"

I spoke. "Sorry, I don't shake hands with murderers."

He smiled. "I assume you mean those two girls."

I spoke. "You're sort of wearing the evidence." I pointed at his hands. He looked down at his hands, and saw the blood on them.

He smiled. "Your power of observation is as great as ever. I assume you used that same power to find me."

I spoke. "It wasn't that hard. You left a pretty visible trail."

Cory chuckled "You know I'm rather surprised that you're alive. I heard you died in a fire."

I spoke "it'll take more than a little fire to kill me."

He chuckled "So it would seem; what a shame. I was hoping that you were dead. So, where have you been for the past year and a half?"

I smiled. "Would you believe another world?"

He started to laugh. "Oh yeah, that's a good one."

I decided to get back to the point. My face instantly became neutral. "Why did you kill those women?" I tried to keep my tone even.

He spoke. "That whore Caitlyn thought it was a smart idea to cheat on me. She found out the hard way why no one cheats on Cory Bain."

I was getting angry, but I held it in. "Why did you kill the child?"

He shrugged. "She was a witness. I couldn't let her tell on me."

I was disgusted. "I see you haven't changed at all. You still pick on people weaker than yourself."

He smiled. "You mean like how I picked on you all the way through school?"

I narrowed my eyes. "You always were a bully, Cory, and now I see that bullying wasn't enough for you. You've decided to murder as well."

He shrugged. "You know me. I do whatever I want. Because-" I cut in.

"Because you believe you're above everyone else."

He laughed. "I AM above everyone else, Michael. I was always stronger than those around me, and I knew it. I used my strength to get what I want."

He was right about that. Cory was the worst kind of bully, because he had the strength to back up his talk and his actions. He was also naturally cruel. Every sane person was afraid of him. Everyone knew that it never paid to piss off Cory Bain.

I sighed. "You really haven't changed at all, have you?"

He smiled. "No, and why should I? You know Michael, when you got older I could feel that you were stronger, but you never used your strength to get what you want."

I spoke. "Of course. A true warrior never flaunts his power or bullies the weak. Unlike you."

He chuckled. "I guess that's what separates you from me."

I narrowed my eyes. "There's quite a lot that separates me from you, but I don't want to get into that."

Cory smiled. "You do realize that since you know about what I've done I'm going to have to kill you now."

I nodded, and unsheathed my reverse blade sword. "I'm ready."

He smiled. "My, what a nice shiny sword you have."

I looked at my sword for a brief moment. The blade was silver-white, and thanks to Hades' enchantment my reverse blade sword was unbreakable and would never loose its shine. My normal sword was another case. The blade was black, and Hades' enchantment made it unbreakable as well, and the blade would never grow dull.

I looked back up at Cory. "There's one more thing before we begin."

He looked curious. "What is it?"

I spoke. "You've admitted that you've killed those girls, but when I found them they looked like they were killed by some kind of large animal. If you did kill them, how did you do that to those girls?"

He smiled. "Yes, well that's my secret, but I think I'll tell you. After all, you and I are an old 'friends', and you're gonna die, anyway. Six months ago I was bitten by dog. Thing is, I found out later that I wasn't bitten by a dog."

I was curious. "So, what were you bitten by?"

He smiled. "You'll find out." He looked over to his right. He smiled an evil smile "In fact, you're gonna find out right now." I turned my head to see what he was looking at. All I saw was moonlight sifting through a boarded window.

That's when I heard Cory cry out in pain. I turned to him, and saw that he was on his knees. His body was shaking all over. 'What's going on?' I thought. That's when he tore his clothes off. Hair started growing all over his body, his mouth was becoming a snout, and his muscles started to bulge. My eyes widened; Cory was a werewolf. After a few more minutes, he was completely transformed.

When he stood up, I got a better look at him. He stood about eight feet tall. He had black fur that covered all of his body, and savage, yellow eyes. His mouth was lined with razor sharp teeth. He was very muscular, and I was sure he was very fast. He also had claws on his hands and feet.

That's when he howled. His howl was so loud that it shook the warehouse. After that, he turned his attention back to me. I readied my sword, and prepared to fight him.

* * *

I ran out of the warehouse, but I stayed near the door. 'Why did Michael want me to leave? I don't understand' I thought.

After a few minutes, I looked up at the sky, and saw the moon creep out of the clouds. I looked back at the door. 'I hope he's alright in there' I thought. That's when I heard something howl from inside the building. It was a terrifying sound. 'What was that?' I thought, alarmed. That's when my right hand started to hurt. That's when I realized that Michael was in trouble. I had to help him. 'Michael, I'm coming, brother' I thought, as I opened the warehouse door, and went back into the warehouse.

* * *

Cory pounced at me. I quickly dove to the side, and avoided his attack. He recovered and swung his clawed hand at me. I jumped back and managed to avoid the deadly hand. I jumped into the air, and performed a 'Ryu Tsui Sen.' Cory saw this, and jumped away from my attack. I missed him and hit the ground instead. I sensed that he had pounced at me again. Instead of dodging this time, I held up my hand and cast an Aerga spell. The spell hit Cory in the chest, and sent him flying into a stack of crates. The crates broke when he hit them, and the entire stack collapsed on top of him.

After a few seconds, he got out from under the crates. He gave me a confused look. I smiled. "You're not the only one with secrets, Cory." His eyes flooded with anger, and he let out another savage howl. He pounced at me with such speed that I barely had time to dodge to the side. What I didn't know was the he expected me to dodge. He kicked me in the gut with his left leg. The force of his kick sent me flying into the air. I hit my back against another stack of crates, and cried out in pain. I fell to the ground, and slowly tried to get up.

I sensed Cory was pouncing at me again. I held up my hand, and cast a Protect spell. His body hit the barrier, and he fell to the ground. I got up to my feet at the same time he got up. He clawed the barrier that was in front of me. My barrier didn't break under the attack. He tried again, and this time I could feel the barrier waver. It wasn't going to withstand another attack.

That's when he kicked the barrier, and the barrier broke. Before he could strike me again, I quickly jumped into the air, and got behind him. I swung my sword up at his neck and performed a 'Ryu Kan Sen.' Cory spun around and grabbed my sword. He roared in my face, lat go of my sword, and kicked me in the gut.

I went flying through the air again, and fell to the ground. I sensed that Cory was once again pouncing at me. I quickly rolled to my right and avoided his pounce. He howled in fury. I quickly got back up to my feet, and attacked him with a 'Kuzu Ryu Sen.' I struck all nine vital areas and he was sent into another stack of crates. The crates collapsed on top of him again.

I was breathing hard. If he were still in his human form this would've been over by now. I knew Cory was tough in his human form, and he's much tougher as a werewolf. I thought werewolves were only a myth. I guess I was wrong.

That's when Cory emerged from the crates. He grabbed a broken piece of wood, and threw it towards me. I prepared to block the oncoming object, but that's when I noticed that it wasn't heading towards me…it was heading towards the light bulb. The wood hit the light bulb, and it shattered.

Now it was nearly pitch black, and my eyes had to adjust to the change in light. Until my eyes adjusted, I was temporarily blind. I had to rely on my other senses to see where Cory was. Oddly, I couldn't sense that he was in front of me anymore.

My eyes finally adjusted, and I looked around the area. Cory was gone. This wasn't good. 'Great, there're multiple places where he can strike from. Where is he?' I thought. I started moving around the clearing, and looked every which way. He was in here somewhere.

Unfortunately, he had black fur, so he blended in perfectly with his surroundings. The only source of light I had was the moonlight sifting through the boarded windows. I was getting a little nervous. If I didn't find Cory soon, he'd likely strike me with such speed and ferocity that I'd die instantly.

That's when I heard a noise behind me. I spun around, sword raised and ready to strike…but nothing was there. 'Could that have just been a diversion?' I thought. That's when I heard another sound to my right. I spun to my right, but nothing was there. That's when I heard a low growl from behind me. I spun around, and cast a Thundaga spell. The spell hit a stack of crates, and they exploded. Fiery debris rained down near me. Cory wasn't there. 'He's trying to freak me out' I thought. I had to admit, he was doing a decent job.

That's when I felt a presence right behind me. I spun around quickly, only to receive a punch in the face. I fell to the ground, and felt something heavy land on top of me. My eyes snapped open, and I saw that Cory was now on top of me. I tried to get up but he had pinned down my arms with his hands, and his legs were pinning down my legs. I struggled to get up, but it was useless. He was stronger and heavier than I was. I was trapped.

He slowly bent his head down near me, opened his mouth, and licked the side of my face. He let out a low, pleased growl. I could see the triumph in his yellow eyes. He raised his head up, opened his mouth, and prepared to rip my throat out. I closed my eyes, and braced myself for his bite. That's when I heard him yelp in pain.

I opened my eyes, and saw that Cory was no longer on top of me. I sat up, and saw that he was blasted into another stack of crates. The crates collapsed on top of him. I was confused, but then I sensed that a familiar someone was behind me. I turned, and saw Vivi standing there, staff outstretched. I smiled. "Thanks, Vivi." He nodded, and I got back up to my feet.

I turned my attention back to Cory. He got up from the crates, and looked at Vivi. Again, he looked confused. I smiled. "Oh, did I forget to mention that I have a blood brother." Cory let out another furious howl and pounced at Vivi.

I extended my hand and cast a Flare spell at Cory. Cory was hit in the side by the spell and was thrown into another stack of crates. I narrowed my eyes. "You will not harm my brother!" Cory got up from the ground, and I placed my reverse blade sword back in my sheath. I assumed a 'Battou Jutsu' stance. I was going to end this.

I spoke. "let's finish this once and for all, Cory." Cory got up, howled, and pounced at me again. As soon as he got close enough, I executed the 'Ama Kakeru Ryuu no Hirameki.' The attack hit Cory's side, and he was sent flying ten feet up into the air. He fell on top of a bunch of crates. The crates collapsed under his great weight.

* * *

I sheathed my sword, and turned back to him. He was lying on top of a pile of broken wood. His body started to change back to its human form. At first, I thought he might be dead, but then I saw his chest rise. He was only unconscious.

Vivi walked up to me. He spoke. "Michael, are you okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for helping me, Vivi."

He smiled. "You're welcome, but what do we do with him?" He motioned to Cory's body.

I thought for a moment. "I think we should drop him off at the scene of the crime, and call the police" Vivi nodded. We grabbed Cory's body, and made our way back to the alley.

* * *

We made it back to the alley, and dropped Cory's body off. Once that was done, we called the police, and told them about the murder. After calling them, we waited on a roof near the alley. We watched the police arrive at the scene. A few of them had the same reaction Vivi had when he first saw the bodies. Frankly, I couldn't blame them. It was a horrid sight. We watched them take Cory's unconscious body away. The clean up crew came in, and cleaned up the bloody alley. The bodies and parts of the two girls were bagged and shipped off to the morgue. Once that was over, Vivi and I made our way to my Master's house.

* * *

It was 11:30 P.M. and I could see a light in my Master's house. 'Good he's still up' I thought. We approached the door, and rang the doorbell. After a few seconds, my Master answered the door.

He was surprised to see us. "Michael, Vivi, what are you two doing here?"

I spoke. "I decided to take Vivi trick-or-treating. We found two mutilated corpses. One of my old school bullies is a werewolf. And we've had one hell of a night."

My Master nodded his head. "It sounds like it. Come in and tell me everything." We walked in, and told my Master everything.

* * *

After telling him everything, he sighed. "Man, you two have been through a lot tonight."

I spoke. "Can we stay here until my ring is recharged?"

He nodded. "Of course you can stay. It's not like you have much of a choice." We nodded, and decided to go to bed. I went upstairs, entered my room, got into my bed, and quickly went to sleep.

* * *

Ten minutes later, I was awakened from my sleep. My eyes slowly opened, and looked upon the person who woke me up. My eyes met glowing amber eyes. It was Vivi. I spoke "What is it, Vivi? Can't sleep?" He nodded, and I could guess what was bothering him. "You were thinking about what happened to those women, weren't you?" He nodded. I moved over to give him room to get into my bed. He climbed into my bed, and looked at me.

He spoke. "Thanks."

I nodded. "No problem. I'm always willing to help you."

Tears started to form in Vivi's eyes. "Why did they have to die like that? No one deserves to die like that. Why did it happen to them?"

I sighed. "I don't know, Vivi. No one ever does know why these things happen, but there's nothing we can do for them now."

Vivi sighed. "I know, but…" he paused. I sighed; Vivi shouldn't have seen what he'd seen. He'd seen death and destruction, sure, but he had never seen anything so brutal. What Cory did to those women was something only someone who had lost their humanity could do. I mentally cursed myself for bringing Vivi into that alley. As soon as I saw the blood, I should've checked it out alone.

I spoke. "I'm sorry, Vivi. I should've gone into that alley alone. I'm sorry you had to see what you saw."

He shook his head. "No, it's alright, Michael. I was just shocked and terrified that anyone could be that cruel."

I nodded. "I know. It surprises me as well, but there are people like Cory Bain in the world. There are also some people that are even worse than him. Yet, there are still good people in this world, and as long as there are good people in this world there will always be hope."

Vivi nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right." He fell silent.

After a few minutes, I spoke. "You know, Vivi. There's something I haven't told you."

He looked at me. "What's that?"

I smiled. "you saved my life tonight, Vivi. Thank you."

I could see the smile in his eyes. "You're welcome."

I smiled. "There's something else I haven't told you."

He looked curious. "What?"

I smiled. "Happy Halloween, Vivi." His eyes widened in surprise. Then I saw happiness reenter his eyes.

He spoke. "Happy Halloween, Michael." I smiled and embraced him. He returned my embrace, and snuggled a little closer to me. We just stayed there and held each other. Eventually, we fell asleep in each others arms.

* * *

I woke up and found myself in a cell. I had no idea what I was doing here. That's when I remembered Michael, and that kid. 'That bastard, this is his doing' I thought, furiously.

I ran at the bars and tried to rip them out of the wall. The bars didn't give. Even with my enhanced strength I couldn't rip them out. I was furious. I started bashing my hands against the bars. "LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT! DAMN YOU, MICHAEL! WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE I'M GONNA TEAR YOU APART! YOU AND YOUR LITTLE FRIEND! YOU HEAR ME, I'M GONNA FUCKING KILL YOU! I'LL RIP OFF YOU LIMBS, GOUGE OUT YOUR EYES, RIP OFF YOUR EARS, RIP OUT YOUR TOUNG, RIP OUT YOUR INTESTINES AND STOMACH, DEVOURE YOUR LIVER, RIP OUT YOUR HEART AND LUNGS, AND TEAR YOUR FUCKING THROAT OUT!"

"Interesting threat," said a voice behind me.

I spun around and saw a dark figure lying on a cot. I could feel something dark and foreboding about this guy. He got off the cot, and I got a better look at him. He was about 5'9" He was wearing a black shirt, and black pants. He also wore black boots, and a long, torn, black cape. He had a pale face and black hair. I also noticed that he had a sword strapped to his left side. It was his eyes that caught my attention. They were glowing red. This guy wasn't human.

"Who are you?" he approached me.

He spoke. "I saw you fight him. You did very well. Pity luck was on his side that night. We have a common enemy. That enemy named me Angel. I was once a part of him, but now I'm my own man."

I spoke. "You mean Michael?"

He nodded. "Yes, and the mage that was with him. I'm sure you know who I mean." I nodded.

How could I forget? That stupid kid stopped me from delivering the final blow to Michael. Michael would've been dead if it wasn't for that little bastard. I looked at him. "So what do you want?"

He smiled. "I want the same thing you want. I want them dead."

I spoke. "What's your name? You said Michael named you Angel."

He nodded. "Indeed he did, but I prefer to be called Phantom."

I nodded. 'That names sounds so much cooler' I thought.

I spoke "Okay, so we both want Michael and this kid dead. What do you propose?"

He smiled. "Serve me, and I'll train you. I can teach you how to control the animal in you. I can teach you how to transform at will without the aid of the full moon. You'll become far stronger than you've ever been. All you must do is join me." I thought about this for a moment. I thought this guy was full of crap, but something about him told me that he was telling the truth. Besides, if what he said is true, then I'll be far more powerful.

'Ah, what have I got to lose?' I thought.

I spoke. "If you can get me out of this cell, you got yourself a deal." He smiled, and lifted his hands up. There was a flash of light and I felt myself falling. Eventually, I hit the ground. When I looked up, I realized that I wasn't in my cell anymore.

* * *

I was in a large room. It looked like the foyer of some kind of old castle. It was large room. The walls were made out of some kind of shiny black stone. There was a large staircase right in front of me that led up to the second, third, fourth, and fifth floors. A red carpet was laid out on the stairs. There were tapestries hanging on the walls. The symbol on each of them was of an Angel with broken wings. There were candle sconces along the walls.

I looked behind myself, and saw a large door made out of black metal. I looked up, and saw a chandelier above my head. It was a gruesome sight. The ring of the chandelier looked like it had been made out of the bones of a human backbone. I also noticed eight human sized skulls were attached to the ring of the chandelier. The skulls had candles placed on top of them. I turned my attention away from the chandelier and looked to my right. I noticed a number of windows to my right. I looked to my left and noticed the same number of windows.

I walked up to one of the windows on my left and looked out at the landscape. What I saw made me realize that I wasn't on Earth anymore. The landscape was dark, twisted, steamy, and barren. There was a vast mountain range in the distance that went as far as my eyes could see. There was also an active volcano at least five miles away from the place. I also noticed a tall tower near the volcano, and a path of lava that lead from the volcano to the tower. The sky was cloudy and dark. There was no light in this place, only darkness and fire. I could feel the evil in this place. I smiled 'I could get used to this place' I thought.

I couldn't believe that this Phantom guy pulled it off. I was free. That's when Phantom appeared beside me. He smiled. "Welcome to my home, Cory Bain. Welcome…to Castle Phantom."

I smiled. 'Michael, you and your blood brother better watch out, 'cause Cory Bain will be back with a vengeance.'

* * *

Well, that's the end of my Halloween fic. I hope my info about Halloween and the Jack-O-Lantern is correct. I looked at quite a few sites and that seems to be the general info about Halloween. Looks like Phantom has gained a new ally. Curious about where Castle Phantom is? …You'll find out much later, and I do mean MUCH later. Of course if you can figure it out for yourselves, that's fine, too. Up next is a Thanksgiving fic. I'm sure you won't want to miss it. I'll try and post it the day before Thanksgiving. Also if anyone wants to write a Mr. 288xMikoto fic. Go ahead. I strongly encourage it. 


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